Best Friends
by nursie91
Summary: A series of one-shots detailing the friendships of the Marauders and Lily from their Hogwarts days to the bitter day when Sirius fell through the veil. The highs, the lows, the good times and the bad. AU with my 'The Last Maurauder' but you don't have to read that to understand these :


_I do not own Harry Potter!_

_So some of my wonderful reviews from The Last Marauder asked how Sirius was cruel to Remus after I mentioned it and I thought the idea of one shots would be best and then I thought that I could have one shots about the friends of Remus, James, Lily, Sirius and Peter! Here is the first one, year six. Enjoy!_

Remus Lupin refused to speak. James Potter and Peter Pettigrew would have understood if the silence had only been directed at Sirius Black. But it was not, it included their dorm room, the entire Gryffindor House, really the entire school. He refused to speak to anyone, in class, out of class. He refused to rise to the teasing that James desperately heaped on him. In fact, he was almost refusing to spend time in anyone's company. Lily Evans was the only one allowed anywhere near him.

It had been twelve days since Sirius had told Snape about the whomping willow, six days since Remus had returned from the hospital wing and two days since Sirius had finally acknowledged that there was a possibility that something had gone wrong. That he had made a mistake.

James was lying on his bed staring at the roof. It was Saturday. They should be out under a tree, talking, laughing. Remus helping them with homework. Instead, Sirius was moping about Remus being stubborn, Remus had vanished as soon as he woke up and Peter was struggling to work his way through charms that was impossible without Remus' help. James closed his eyes and sighed heavily and rolled onto his stomach.

"Padfoot? What are you doing?"

Sirius was making a valiant attempt to tear the curtains around his bed apart with his bare hands.

"I hate him!" His voice rose sharply.

"Who?" James sat up, a wary look in his brown eyes. He wasn't ready to point out that Remus had every right to be angry. Again.

"Snivellus."

"Well, I worked that out." James muttered bitterly.

"He keeps looking like I am going to kill him! And when I passed him today he told me I was exactly like my parents and I was nothing more than a murdering Black."

James sighed. "Ignore him, Pads. He is just being Snivellus."

"Moony heard him, Prongs." Sirius whispered. "And he just walked away. Looked at me and walked away. Didn't say a word, didn't do anything." Sirius slumped down his eyes dark and unreadable.

"He agreed, Prongs. I could see it in his eyes. And Evans won't leave his side and she glares at me. That means that he told her and I hate that. He has no loyalty! I showed that! I hate him!"

James winced. "I told her." He said firmly. "Remus wouldn't let us into the hospital wing, I told Evans, they are friends, and I needed to know that someone would look after him."

Sirius sank onto the floor. "He's being stubborn."

"Do you know what happens to werewolves when they kill or bite someone?"

Sirius shrugged. "It wasn't Remus' fault."

"The ministry wouldn't see it like that. He would have been killed. I read about it. It's torture what they do, Sirius. They inject their lungs and veins with silver. It's slow, painful and burns them from the inside out while suffocating them."

Sirius swallowed. "I didn't know that." His voice was rough.

"Yeah well, still thinks he's a prat?"

Sirius didn't reply.

"Remus, you can't leave school!" Lily's eyes were filled with tears. "Please don't!" She was clinging to his arm. "You can't let him do this to you!"

"Don't." Remus whispered. He couldn't meet her eyes. "Please, Lil, I… I have too."

"But Remus, you are the best student here! If you leave I won't have anyone to compete with."

Remus half-smiled. "Nice try." They sat under a tree, books spread around them, bars of chocolate that were half eaten, brought by Lily to assist in bribing her friend to stay.

"Please." Lily leaned against his shoulder. "You shouldn't let him chase you out of school."

"I'm not. I realised that I am a dark creature. I am a monster and I could hurt someone. I could _kill_ someone."  
"Remus, don't!" Lily pleaded. "You aren't a monster."

A bitter laugh escaped him. He froze as something bounced off his head and he turned to see James glaring at him.

"You aren't a monster!" He snapped angrily and Lily blinked in surprised.

Remus fell silent, hunching over and Lily felt her heart break a little.

"He wants to leave school." Lily blurted suddenly, speaking to James Potter for the first time in six years completely voluntarily.

"Lily!" Remus yelped at the same time as James shouted.

"Remus! You can't leave school! Why would you do this! You can't! I won't let you! You are my best mate!"

"Don't." Remus was on his feet. "You don't understand. Neither of you do. I am leaving school. I am telling the headmaster tomorrow and I don't care what you say." He turned and stormed away.

"I am going to kill Black." Lily sprang to her feet her eyes flashing with anger. "He has broken Remus and I _hate_ him!"

"I will help." James spoke through clenched teeth. "I need to speak to him. Evans?"

"Potter?"

"Can you follow him? Remus? You are the only one's he's spoken to properly since… Since, you know."

"Sure." Lily gathered the books into her arms. "Potter?"

James looked at her.

"He is a good friend. Remus I mean. If I lose him because of Black, I will hex him and you will not be able to stop me. He is my _best_ friend."

James nodded and they parted ways.

"Sirius!" James tore through the common room and the Gryffindor's looked up in curiosity. Everyone had noticed that the four boys, who were practically joined, had fractured. Their group splintering into unrecognisable disarray.

"Black!" James flung their dorm room door open and glared at the undignified sight of Sirius with his tongue down a girl's throat. "Get out!" He snapped and the affronted teenager obeyed.

"Hey! What's with you?" Sirius glared at his best friend.

"Remus is leaving."

"The dorm? Good, I am sick of him sulking and pretending I don't exist."

James's fist connected with his nose and Sirius reeled back, shocked.

"Remus. Is. Leaving. Hogwarts." He spoke through gritted teeth. "And it's your fault, _Black."_

Sirius's hand dropped from his nose and the blood flowed freely. His face had paled. "He's leaving? He can't…" His eyes widened in horror. "I… Where is he? Prongs! I have to talk to him! He can't leave! He can't! Hogwarts makes him happy! He loves this place! He dreamed about it when he was small! He can't leave!"

"Yeah, bout time you realised." James was still glaring but his voice had softened. "He and Evans are down by the lake. She plans to kill you."

Sirius winced before fleeing the common room, forgetting the bleeding nose, forgetting everything barring the fact he had to make it right with his friend.

Lily sat a stone's throw away from Remus watching him carefully. He had told her to leave him alone, she had ignored him and stood, watching him pace the shoreline of the lake with a restlessness that both frightened and worried her.

"Evans."

"Black!" Immediately her wand was at his throat. "What do you want here? You have caused enough damage!" She spoke in a hushed whisper but her lowered voice still brimmed with fury.

"I need to talk to him." Sirius' eyes were on the figure by the lake. Remus had collapsed on the sand, making himself as small as possible, his arms wrapped around his long legs, his face hidden against his knees.

Lily laughed coldly. "You think I am going to let you near him? I don't want him to leave Hogwarts let alone kill himself over _you_!"

"He wants to apologise. If he makes Remus walk into the lake you can use an unforgivable on him." James appeared behind Sirius, Peter dutifully trailing along.

Lily's eyes narrowed and she flickered a glance at Remus. "Fine. You convince him to stay. I won't hex you." She smiled coldly and settled back onto the rock.

"You are staying?" Sirius looked annoyed.

"You are messing with my best friend." Lily spat. "Of course I am staying."

Sirius walked towards Remus. His assured stride was hesitant, the usually erect shoulders slumped.

"Moony?"

Remus flinched as if he had been slapped but otherwise remained frozen. Sirius settled onto the sand beside him and began to draw lines in the sand, his nervous movements not unnoticed by the werewolf.

"I'm sorry."

"You've said that." Remus looked up his lips set in a line of weary resignation. He frowned. "Your nose?"

"Huh?" Sirius reached up and brought fingers covered in blood away. "Oh. James punched me. Moony—"

"Don't call me that." Remus muttered. "Why did James hit you?"

"Because I am a prat. And a fool. And a git. And I hurt you. So he hit me."

Remus processed the information slowly and looked away.

"Remus… I really am sorry. I didn't know what would happen! I didn't know that it would hurt you so much!"

"Do you know what they do to monsters like me if we attack someone?"

"You aren't a monster." Sirius snapped. "James told me." He swallowed. "I had no idea, truly, Remus! I was stupid and an idiot and I would give anything to take it back and start that day over! I didn't think… I didn't think about how it would hurt you, about how you could be hurt or killed or… Or that you would leave school."

Remus frowned.

"Please, Remus. I am sorry. I would do anything! Anything if you can forgive me. I will never hex anyone again! I will be in bed by eight. I will give up Quidditch. I will stop dating! Just please, please forgive me."

"Leave Snape alone?"

"What?"

"Would you leave him alone?"

Sirius bit his lip and nodded. "Yes. I would. I will. Just, please forgive me for hurting you. For nearly killing you."

Remus studied the desperate pleading, the grief stricken face, the blood and closed his eyes. "I forgive you." He whispered finally and almost smiled as Sirius shouted with joy and pulled him into a tight embrace.

"Thank you, Moony! Thank you!"

_Review please!_

_And for anyone who has idea of further One-shots they would like to see please PM me! My imagination only works so much! :D_


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